1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates generally to the field of medical diagnostics. More particularly, the invention relates to the diagnosing of neovascularized tissue.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
In recent years, there has been a considerable interest in the investigation of ocular neovascularization. Ocular neovascularization is the formation of new blood vessels in the development of diseases such as, for example, macular degeneration and diabetic retinopathy.
Retinal neovascularization resulting from diabetic retinopathy is the most common cause of blindness in young patients in major industrialized countries, and choroidal neovascularization resulting from age-related macular degeneration is the most common cause of severe vision loss in elderly patients.
During neovascularization, increased amounts of blood in capillaries change the optical properties of the tissue. Meanwhile, it has been known that ocular tissues are inherently birefringent and may alter the polarization of incident light in scattering events according to the their geometry and optical properties.
What is needed is a noninvasive method and apparatus for detecting neovascularized ocular tissues. What is also needed is a noninvasive method and apparatus for diagnosing ocular diseases such as diabetic retinopathy and macular degeneration.